Chase Me (Broke and Beautiful #1)(15)

As soon as Louis kicked the door shut behind him, she started fighting to get free. He had no choice but to let her, even though he wanted to gather her close and squeeze as hard as he could. He’d have to settle for blocking the door. Until she heard him out.

“Get out of the way,” she grated.

“No,” he returned, shaking his head.

Her chest heaved. “Is this how you get off? Embarrassing girls by sending them around in costumes when you have a f*cking whim? Pretending to like them, then revealing that you’re actually some kind of sick jerk?”

“I didn’t know you were coming here tonight, Roxy.” He reached a hand toward her, but she flinched back. “I didn’t even know you were a stripper.”

“Oh, bullshit. Then what were you apologizing for out there?” She cursed under her breath. “What about your text message today about wanting to switch our date to tonight? There was never going to be a date. I’m such an idiot.”

Seeming to remember then that she wasn’t wearing a shirt, her hands flew up to cover her breasts. She looked so exposed, so fragile suddenly. A state he’d never thought to associate with her. He couldn’t take another second of it, so he went toward her. She backed away and he kept going. As he’d anticipated, she struck out at him, pummeling his chest with her fists. His arms wrapped around her in an attempt to prevent her, but she kept thrashing. All Louis could do was hang on tight until she stopped, which she finally did with a sob.

“I’m not a stripper.” Her voice was toneless against his chest. “I know you won’t believe me or care, but I’m not. I needed some quick cash for rent on my new place. This was my first time.”

“Why wouldn’t I believe you?” he asked into her hair.

“Liars always assume everyone else is lying, too.” She sniffed. “Was the tooth story even real?”

“Afraid so. You thinking of knocking it out again?”

“In vivid detail.”

“Fair enough.” He tried not to be obvious about inhaling her scent. What if this was the last chance he got? The pit in his stomach yawned wide. “One of the guys out there is Zoe’s coworker. You know, the, uh—”

“Girl who penned an ode to your dong?”

“Yes. That one.” He cleared his throat, praying like hell his one-night stand never came up again in conversation. “She might have been a little on the upset side when I called her to get the agency’s number. So I could find you.”

“You didn’t tell her that, did you?”

“Ah, but I did. I thought being up-front was the adult thing to do. Would a liar do that?” No response. His long exhale of breath ruffled the hair at her temple, fascinating him. He wanted to brush it back with his fingers but didn’t want to risk her pulling away. It felt so f*cking great to hold her. “She gave her coworker the agency name. I had no idea you’d walk through that door. Christ, the last thing I want is other men to see you naked. I haven’t even had a chance to yet.”

His attempt to make her laugh didn’t work. “Your chances are slim to none at the moment, dude.”

“That appears to be the sad reality.” He gave in to the desire to touch her hair, releasing his breath slowly when she stayed put. Time to take one more leap. “I guess I’ll have to start convincing you all over again on Saturday.”

She jerked her head up. “You’re joking, right?”

“Nope. I made reservations and everything.”

Her eyes were twin mirrors of confusion. “Even if I forgave you long enough to break bread with you in some snobby restaurant . . .”

“What?” he prompted when she didn’t continue.

She pushed away from him, continuing to watch him closely. A hint of insecurity showed through her questioning look before she hid it. “Even then, you really want to bring out the girl who . . .” She swept a hand down her body, clad in only a see-through bra and cheerleader skirt. A sight that he felt slightly ashamed to be storing in his spank bank. In a safety-deposit box all its own, sealed with a triple lock so it couldn’t get out. Pay attention. “ . . . the girl who showed up to get naked for your friends? I get the feeling you don’t date a lot of strippers.”

“But you’re not a stripper. This is your first time.”

“What if I do it again?” She lifted one shoulder and let it drop, but he could tell her casualness was feigned. “What then?”

Honestly, he didn’t like it. No, he f*cking hated the idea of her walking into a room full of douchebags with singles in their fists and no clue about the awesome girl she was. Those faceless men were his worst enemies. Above all, they could be dangerous to her. When Louis felt his hands clench and shake, he breathed deeply through his nose. While he might feel this way, something told him that if he was honest about it with Roxy, she’d walk. She would see this as temporary before it even got started.

So he proved her right and made himself a liar.

“What you do for a living makes no difference to me.” The lie tasted bitter in his mouth, so he tempered it with the truth. “I want to take you out. I want to know you.” Better than anyone else does.

She cast a glance toward the door. “I can’t go back out there.”

Louis unbuttoned his shirt and draped it across her shoulders, watching as she did the buttons with trembling fingers. “See? Now I’m the shirtless one. They’ll all be too busy staring at my rippling muscles to notice anything else.”